Pastoral Care
At St. Mary's Medical Center and Palm Beach Children’s Hospital, we recognize all faiths and beliefs in our pastoral approach and believe all spiritual and religious rites and symbols represent positive energy, faith, and hope.
This recognition drives the actions our pastoral care staff takes every day. The activities of our Chaplains include diverse interactions with patients and families, professional staff, volunteers and community members. Our trained and
professional Chaplains reach across faith group boundaries.
- Grief and loss care
- Risk screening
- Help reconciling spiritual issues with organ/tissue donation and advance directives
- Crisis intervention
- Spiritual assessment
- Communication with caregivers or staff
- Conflict resolution among staff members, patients and family members
- Decision-making regarding decedent affairs
- Institutional support during organizational change or difficulty
- Ethical guidance
- Education for the healthcare team and community about the relationship of religious and spiritual issues to institutional services
Contacting Pastoral Care
Call (561)881-2899to contact pastoral care during the day, and after office hours. You can leave a message at this number—messages are retrieved periodically throughout the day and night. If you’re a patient in the hospital, you can reach the chaplain on duty by dialing ext. 29814.
When do I contact Pastoral Care?
Chaplains are on call to visit patients any time, day or night. During your pre-admission to the hospital, you may request a visit for the day of your child’s surgery. If you or your child are feeling down or discouraged during your hospital stay, a visit with a chaplain might help put things in perspective.
Daily Mass
A Catholic mass is held in the Old Convent Chapel on the St. Mary's campus at noon every Monday through Friday, and a vigil mass is held on Saturdays at 4 p.m. There is a small meditation chapel on the first floor of the hospital,
located near the interfaith elevators.
Prayer Requests
Requests for prayer and mass intentions may be made any time by placing them in the prayer box on the wall outside the meditation chapel on the first floor of the hospital near the interfaith elevators or by calling (561) 881-2899.
